Stop and Look

Now therefore stand still and see this great thing that the LORD will do before your eyes. 1 Samuel 12:16

My wife boasts an impressive collection of heart-shaped rocks, which are on display in our yard and in our home. Wherever we go, she seems to find them. You know who never finds heart-shaped rocks? Me. I can only recall one heart-shaped rock that I’ve brought home, and I found that one only because she first pointed it out to me. Why does she find them, and I don’t? It’s because wherever we go, she looks for them. I don’t. It’s that simple. When we’re out hiking, I’m looking at anything but the ground. Heart-shaped rocks simply aren’t a priority for me, so I don’t search for them. It’s not that these rocks are present in my wife’s life and absent in mine. It’s just that she makes the effort necessary to find them. I do not, so I don’t.

Though it involved finding God instead of heart-shaped stones, this is the same principle that the prophet Samuel taught in today’s passage. In the story, Samuel implored his people to stop, to look, and to listen, so that they may see what God was about to do in their lives. The implication is that if they failed to look, they would miss it. God was present and moving among his people, whether they saw it or not. Samuel knew that in their self-preoccupation the Israelites may miss out on God if they didn’t purposefully stop and make the effort to see him.

This same principle is true in my life. I’ve lived for years, believing in God, but not really looking for him. I was preoccupied with self, seeking whatever my appetite wanted. I spent little or no time reading my Bible, praying, or meditating. This pursuit of me led most obviously to the disaster of my addiction. In recovery now, it’s still my nature to follow me, but I don’t want to go back to the old life. So, daily, I get up early to seek God, investing in my relationship with him. I read the Bible. I pray. I meditate. I want to know God’s presence in my life, and so, I must daily seek him. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you (James 4:8).

If I complained that I never found any heart-shaped rocks, while refusing to search for them, you’d think me a fool. Likewise, if I claimed to want God in my life, but I never spent any time seeking him, you should also think me a fool. If I want God in my life, then I must daily stop and look for him.